Love 4 the Dead
by TheViolentFemme
Summary: Once her friends are dead and she is alone, will Zoey thrive as a survivor or give in to the madness around her? Rated M for Chapter 2, maybe more if I feel like it.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

ZOEY POV

There was something about this dismal airport that chilled me to my very core.

Maybe it was the fact that there were so many dark spots for things to lurk.

Maybe it was that my team was dead, picked off one by one, and I was alone.

Or maybe it was the fact that I had just heard a screech pierce the silence

I turned all around, never giving anything the chance to sneak up on me, but those Hunters were tricky. They still had enough human understanding to wait for your most vulnerable time, but all empathetic thoughts were now replaced by a carnal instinct to feed.

All any one of them really wanted was their next meal. Sure, maybe a few still had enough sadistic traits to enjoy the fear of their prey, but ultimately they were just in it for the next feed.

Being alone had made me one of them. I was just moving on, killing one zombie and the next, never caring about cures, only self-preservation.

I was turning into one of them.

That frightened me more than any zombie in the world.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

HUNTER POV

There was a girl alone wandering through the abandoned airport with a steadfast determination. She picked off every infected in her way as though she saw them for the nothingness they were. She was strong, I would enjoy watching her become lifeless before my eyes.

But, maybe I would keep her alive a bit, toy with her, make her think she would survive. I so enjoyed the look of false hope in a human's eyes.

I let out a screech and watched her jump and spin around, searching fruitlessly for a coming attacker. I did all I could to keep from laughing.

She calmed down quickly and instead of cowering in fear, set off in search of an escape. I would not let her find it.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

She was almost to the hangar that held all the planes, once she got to that she would be home free.

I timed my attack carefully. She had opened the door and still had her hand on it when I leapt, knocking her off her feet and shutting the door firmly behind us.

Her pistols went skidding across the floor when I pinned down her wrists.

I smiled at her cocking my head slightly. Her fear was so genuine, and oh so delicious.

I lowered my face down to centimeters above hers and lapped at the blood on her cheek.

She tasted as delicious as she looked.

She shivered, but I realized the fear was gone. I felt a familiar tightening in my jeans. I'd felt it many times before, using it up on any common infected I could get my hands on, but never with a human.

I was on top of her, so I could tell she felt the growth on her leg. She looked utterly shocked, as I probably did as well.

Out of nowhere, her hand pulled from under mine. She grabbed the back of my head and smashed her lips to mine. My tongue forced it's way into her mouth and my hands moved down her body. With her hands now free she worked at undoing my belt and jeans. My lips moved from hers to her throat as I tore her top apart. I made my lay down to her breasts, sucking and biting hard at her nipples.

She moaned and pressed against me, egging me on. This was no time to be gentle.

My jeans were off now. I hadn't worn drawers since I had turned. She let out another moan as I pushed into her hard. My hands were at her hips, bringing her closer with every thrust. Her naked leg swung around my waist and her nails dug into my shoulders. Sometime between then our clothes had all been shed.

I kept going in further, harder, faster until she uttered a beautiful, blood-curdling scream.

I collapsed on top of her, satisfied to no end that I had made her create such a pleasing sound. Her breathing was fast and ragged. Her breasts smashed against my bare chest.

When her leg around me twitched I noticed I was still inside of her. I made one last hard thrust in and then pulled out. My organ was wet with her juices, and she slid down to me and lapped them all off, until the only thing left was her saliva.

She started sucking, stroking my tip with her tongue. It was my turn to howl. I cummed into her mouth and she gladly swallowed it. She finished and pulled away panting for breath.

I stood as straight as I could manage and pulled on my clothes. She looked in dismay at the remaining shreds of her shirt. But she zipped up her jacket as far as it would go and wore her jeans. She pushed her sleeves to her elbows and walked up to me.

Then she did something unexpected.

She stuck her arm to my lips and said, "Turn me"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

ZOEY POV

_Wait, WHAT???_ I stared at my outstretched arm in shock. _What am I doing??_ I thought to myself._ You're just in shock from what happened. Pull your arm back and keep going before you do something stupid._ I was trying to reason with myself here. This is one thing that could not happen. Why did think for even one second about throwing away my humanity?

I pulled my arm back quickly and clutched it to my chest. "I'm sorry, I don't know what I was thinking. . ." _Wait, why am I apologizing to this thing? It probably doesn't even understand a word I'm saying. _

That's when I noticed the safehouse door was closed.

Now I was scared. I was trapped in here with this thing. This zombie that had so much power over me. I was so stupid to let my guard down.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "You don't even know what I'm saying, do you? I bet you think you can just get rid of me now that you're through, well I'm not giving up that easily. I'm not going to give up my humanity that fast."

He growled and before I could blink he had me pinned against the wall, his face once again inches from mine.

Only now, he looked pissed.

"I'm fighting too. If I have to kill you to get cured, I'll do it gladly." His eyes never faltered, he was telling the truth. "You're not the only one who lost everything."

A tear creeped down his cheek. He was _crying. _I had always thought of them as inhuman, soulless monsters, but now I didn't know what they were. Maybe there was a chance that they were all still fighting to regain what they had lost.

Maybe they were truly just infected with a disease.

A curable one.


	4. Chapter 4

**FLASHBACK CHAPTER!!!!**

**I'm saddened by the lack of reviewing, I've written up these chapters and it really feels like I wouldn't be hurting anyone if I kept them to myself. I'm posting this one then I'm gonna wait till I get a few reviews to post my next one. If I get lots maybe I'll even post two ;D**

**I don't wanna be all bitchy and hold chapters for ransom but I'm not really sure I'm even withholding them from anyone.**

_July 2nd, 2006. Three years before first infection._

Zoey Chambers **(AN - I'm making a lot of things up this chapter, deal with it)** was only 16 years old, and she had just graduated at the top of her class from Harvard University. She had entered college at the age of 14 and majored in medical science. Her life's work was devoted to curing every disease and epidemic that struck the world.

She remembered that day as though it were yesterday, that day she got hired at the CDC and was about to start in the epidemics division.

After a hard childhood, things finally seemed to be going her way for once.

_July 2nd, 2009. 6:15 PM. Two days after first infection._

Zoey walked into her apartment and checked her messages. The monotone words rang through the empty space

"BEEEEP! You have, two new messages. Message one, left at 3:26 PM. . . Zoey! It's your mother! Your father and I just arrived and you're not home. We're outside the apartment now. We'll be shopping for the rest of the day but call us as soon as you get home. We love you bun!"

"He's not my father" I grumbled to myself.

"Message two, left at 5:18 PM. . . Baby! I've gotta work late tonight so go have dinner without me. I'm sorry I can't make it, the hospital's packed and I had to take an extra shift. I love you, babe.

"BEEEEP! End of messages."

"FUCK!" She yelled. She grabbed the phone and forcefully punched in her mother's cell phone number. She was in no mood to talk to the step-father who had abused and raped her, but if she didn't they would just show up eventually. . .

_Ring_

_Ring_

_Ring_

_Hello? Zoey?_

"Yeah, Mom, It's me."

_Hi, honey! We'll head right over, we're just across the street, what great timing! _

Yes, fantastic. "Oh, great. Listen, Devon can't join us for dinner, he's working late. You'll get to see him tomorrow though."

A sigh came from the other end of the line.

_Honestly, Zoey. I don't know why you're still with him. He's much too old for you._

"He's 22, Mom. I'm 19."

_Well, I just don't want to see my little girl get hurt._

"Mom, we've been over this. I love him, and he loves me." I sighed, it was no use arguing with her anymore. "I'll see you soon, alright?"

_Okay, bun. I love you!_

"Love you too."

I slammed the phone onto the receiver. Every time she came she did nothing but criticize and meddle with my life. I stood fuming for a few moments when a knock came on the door

"Yoohoo! We're here!"

I sighed and tried to calm myself before opening the door. It was a miracle every time I preserved my sanity after these encounters. I looked up to the heavens and closed my eyes. "Dear Lord, give me strength."

After taking one long, deep breath, I opened the door to reveal my aging mother, Caroline, and her creepy husband, Bill. **(AN – no, I don't mean that Bill)**

Relations with them had always been tense between us. My mother refused to believe me when I told her what Bill had done to me. Being young, I figured nobody else would either. Now, it just didn't seem to matter anymore. He was just another awful memory from my past. Luckily he was one that would never repeat itself.

He looked at me with a familiar glint in his eye. His gaze traveled from my partially-covered breasts to my jeans stretched tight over my thigh. "Hello, darling. How are you today?" he asked me in a husky voice, as though he was going for a seductive tone.

My mom reached in to hug me and as soon as she let go, Bill's arms replaced hers around my waist. His breath was hot on my ear and his hands slipped obviously around my ass and waist as he pulled back. He leaned down and kissed my cheek and I felt his tongue leave a trail on my skin before he pulled away once more.

"I'm fine, thanks" I was fidgeting with my shirt now, avoiding his face that I knew had that sick smile of perverted satisfaction plastered on it.

It was best to ignore these happenings. It would only complicate things by telling Devon about it, and my mother ignored it with a stubbornness that only knowledge could create.

She knew exactly what he did to me when I was young, and she saw everything he did to me now.

I stood in the doorway while they set their things in their room. When they returned, I had on my jacket that made my form into a shapeless blob over me. It fell to my knees. "Well, shall we get going to dinner then?" I was eager to hurry them out the door. In a public place Bill was less likely to be as obvious.

"Of course, dear. Now, let's get going so we can chat more."

At just that moment, I saw Devon come running towards us. I smiled when I saw him bounce towards us, his scarf around his neck rebounding off his broad shoulders with every step. He came up to me and I leaned forward to kiss him, but he stopped me.

He stuck him nose in his elbow and coughed. "I think I'm getting sick, babe. I don't want to give you anything."

I smiled again "Aww, thanks. Is that why they let you get off?"

"No, I told them I was meeting your mother and step-father tonight and Alex offered to take my shift."

"Well, tell him thank you for me when you see him again."

"I will" He was smiling at me, and I got lost in is beautiful blue eyes. They were the one thing about him nobody could mistake about him. If you hadn't seen him for years you could recognize him just by his eyes.

My mother coughed impatiently behind us and I whirled to face her. I had completely forgotten about them. I was mesmerized once again by Devon's eyes.

He stuck his hand to shake Bill's "So sorry, I'm Devon, Zoey's boyfriend."

"Pleasure," Bill replied, his voice dripping venom. I did all I could to stifle a giggle.

My mother leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. Her breasts nearly popped out of her shirt. She laughed as she noticed a lipstick smudge on his cheek. She stuck her finger in her mouth (trying to be seductive I presume) and rubbed it off of his face, still leaning over.

I rolled my eyes at her This was going to be one long night.

_July 2nd, 2009. 8:37 PM._

The night had been going smoothly. Well, as smoothly as it could have gone.

Bill had been shooting murderous glances at Devon all night, while simultaneously trying to feel me up or stare down my shirt.

My mother had nearly taken her top off when she "accidentally" spilled wine on her chest.

And Devon. . . He had been making pleasant conversation all night. Ignoring all my mother's and Bill's quirks, and making me fall more madly in love with him as every minute ticked by.

"I have something to say, and I think now would be the perfect time to say it, seeing as you're all here." He turned to me and got out of his chair. He pulled a little box from his jacket pocket and knelt down to one knee.

"Zoey Chambers, I love you more than you will ever know. I know we're young, but that means we have that much more time together ahead of us. Zoey, Will you marry me?"

My mother was gaping at the man on the floor, and Bill was turning a comical red before my eyes. People from other tables had turned and were smiling pleasantly. Tears welled up in my eyes.

"Of course! Of course I'll marry you!" He slipped the ring on my finger and pulled me in for a long, deep kiss. A single tear rolled down my cheek when I pulled away. I looked down at my ring. It had a mid-sized ruby gem on a simple silver band. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.

My mother was still gaping when I reluctantly turned her way.

"Honey, now don't do anything rash. I really think you should think this through before diving into something with someone you barely know!"

The smile never left my face. "Mom, you've always been a bitch."

Her face grew shocked, then angry "What the-"

"With how screwed up you raised me, it's a god damn miracle I turned out the way I did." I was not mad at her. In fact, it was quite the opposite. A hysterical smile still was spread across my face. "First you try to seduce my boyfriend, then you have the audacity to say he's not right for me? You're the biggest hypocrite on the face of this planet."

I got up from the table, Devon following suit. "Your things will be outside the apartment. Don't bother knocking, we won't answer."

With that I stalked away from them, leaving my mother to her fruitless protests. Devon was close on my heels and didn't say a word until we were sitting in the car.

"That was. . ." he started.

"Something I've wanted to do for a long time." I finished. I turned and pulled him close to me, kissing him hard on the lips. His hands reached under my shirt and left warm trails on my skin. I pulled away ever so slightly, our noses still touching. He bit playfully at my bottom lip.

"Let's go home, baby." I whispered in his ear.

He floored it all the way back to the apartment.

**(AN – I think everyone has figured out what happens next. If you really want another go at it, read chapter one again cus it probably won't be much different)**

_July 14__th__, 2009. Two weeks after first infection._

The CDC had been in a panic about the virus sent to the states from a remote town in Peru. The virus was already sweeping through cities like wildfire. CEDA officers had been assigned to protect uninfected people but most were merely being infected themselves.

I worked night and day, analyzing every scrap of DNA to try and conquer this thing. It was tedious work, and the only thing keeping me sane was the fact that my fiance would be waiting for me at home.

The hospital was always swarmed with new cases. I feared daily for the health of Devon, but every day God kept him safe for me.

I shook thoughts of Devon aside. _You have to work. The less you think of him, the faster you'll figure this thing out. _Thinking of him was a catch 22. If I didn't think of him I could concentrate more on my work, but when I did think of him it gave me the motivation to find a cure, a vaccine. To keep him safe.

_July ?, 2009._

I had been hiding in this old man's gun-shop for hours, days, who knows how long? His name was Bill, and he had saved me from the most terrifying thing I had ever seen. I walked out of the CDC building to find hundreds of infected waiting to attack us. Everyone else but a man named Louis who apparently worked in the IT department at the CDC in the attack. I had been crying for hours. Bill had once joked and said I reminded him of a Witch he had encountered earlier.

I was confused and he explained what a Witch was.

"It's one of the Special Infected," he told me. "She just sits there, crying. But if you startle her she attacks. She's a feisty one too. She takes a helluva lot of ammo to kill. Nearly impossible on your own."

He was smiling, as though remembering his own achievement.

I didn't give a damn about some crying bitch he had killed. All I knew was that my Devon was out there somewhere. No doubt he was dead by now. Dead or worse. If he was infected. . . I couldn't shake the thought. If he was infected, he'd kill me.

This was like no disease ever heard of before. It destroyed your soul and twisted your body into a mutated monster.

There was only one explanation to why this had happened floating in my head.

God was dead.

X-X-X-X-X-X

**BILL POV**

_Poor kid, _I thought. No doubt she had probably come here for college. She was probably scared for her and her family's lives. I didn't blame her. I wanted so bad to know if my darling Anna made it to a safe-zone.

I turned on the light with a sigh. "Okay, kid. We're running low on supplies. We can't stay here much longer. We should get going." Something glinting red caught my eye.

It was a ring.

An engagement ring.

My heart sank, and I truly understood the girl's panic. "Aw shit, kid. You didn't tell me it was your fiance."

She looked up at me with big sad eyes. "It doesn't matter. We need to keep moving. I need to stay alive so I can fix this."

"You a med student or something?"

"I graduated Harvard med school. I work for the CDC's epidemics division and I'm a scientist. I find vaccines. And cures."

My heart lit up inside. _Anna! _Her face remained dark, obviously she thought she would never find her fiance. "Damn, looks like God cut us a break with you." I smiled at her.

"God's dead." She said as she grabbed an extra pistol. With her two guns, she started picking off infected close to the safe-house door. When she was finished, she heaved the barricade off and kicked it open.

We remained silent as Louis and I followed her into the desolate streets.

_September 14th, 2009. Present._

Zoey had finished deciding. She was going to see this through if it killed her.

She looked up at the man who was still only inches away.

"I'm going to cure you."

**AN: … Yeeeaaaahhh. I just noticed I kinda flip-flopped between third person and first and I'm too lazy to go back and change it. Well, that's what I get for taking a break to sleep, I guess.**

**This chapter wasn't just fluff. I decided to go a different way then what I had planned and this is meaningful fluff. Most of it is irrelevant but it sets up a lot of relevant info for what's to come.**

**Any-who, REVIEW!!!! Or I'll send my Hunter (who remains nameless ;D) to eat your brains.**


	5. Chapter 5

**AN – Yah there's prolly not gonna be anymore insanely long chapters like the last one. Note to self: don't change the way a story is going this far into it. It causes an lot of backpedaling and cheesy, not-so-great explanations.**

**Anywho I decided that as long as one person likes my fics that's enough reason to keep posting them, so please thank the guest reviewer (who was the only one) if you even give a damn about this fic.**

Chapter 5

(Hunter POV)

I stood there stunned. How the hell did she think she was going to cure me?

She has some strange power over me. I can't stand that. I wanted to kill her for it, but that strange power had kept it from happening.

It was probably the reason I had screwed her too.

Something registered in the back of my mind.

_She's a medical scientist._

The thought echoed in my brain. How I knew that I didn't know, but it was as much of a fact as her presence in front of me.

I was intrigued. With this tense agreement between us, I really looked at her face for the first time. Her brown eyes were familiar, her features beacons of light in the dark abandoned depths of my mind.

She reached up and brushed a wild strand of hair behind her ear when a glint of red on her finger caught my eye.

Memories came flooding back to me, breaking free from the barricades and sending me all thoughts from my past life.

Thoughts that had remained hidden away as long as I was like this.

Thoughts that I had given up trying to save.

My shaking hand reached to hold her face in my hands as they (I just learned) had done many times before.

"Zoey" I whispered to her. She flinched.

"How do you know my name?" She reached to smack my hand away and I grabbed her wrist. With my thumb, I stroked her ring. I felt a tear drip down my face.

She ripped her hand free and knocked my hood down around my neck.

I squinted as the light hit me full on. She roughly grabbed my face in both hands and stared into my eyes.

Her eyes filled with shock and wonder. "Devon?" she squeaked.

I responded by pressing my lips against hers. She threw her arms around my neck to deepen the kiss. She ran her hands through my now shaggy hair and I held her close to me. We broke apart and she still clung to me desperately.

"I thought I lost you. I thought I'd never see you again." She was nearly hysterical. Her sobs tore at my heart.

"I love you, Zoey. I'll always love you."

She became frantic suddenly. "We need to go, we need to get out of here. I have to get to a lab, I have to _save you_!"

I shushed her. "You need sleep, we'll leave first thing in the morning, I promise. And, hey" I turned her face gently so she was looking at me "Nothing's gonna harm you, not while I'm around."

"I love you, Devon. No matter what happens, know that I love you."

**AN – This is _not _the end folks, I've got a few more chapters in mind.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you to everyone that reviewed, favorited or alerted this story. I even got some author favorites and that makes me happy XD**

**I'm a little busy with my other L4D fic _Falling In Love Is Such an Easy Thing to Do _so this one may be slow in getting new chappys up. I hope you enjoy this one! If you want check out _Falling _cus this is turning out all predictable and that one is still surprising me...**

**Disclaimer: Everything but Devon (Not Hunter Devon, non-infected Devon cus I don't own Hunters :() is Valve's. They are the geniuses that made L4D.**

Chapter 6

**Zoey POV**

I was ecstatic.

_My _Devon was here, watching over me. Like he always said he would.

My Devon, who I had no doubt in my mind I could save.

He had told me he loved me, I was sure of it. His words were a garbled mess, his voice a husky growl. But I was sure I heard those words ringing clear and true.

Devon and I stood there holding each other for what felt like forever and no time at all.

I tried to stifle a yawn but it came anyway. I laid my head down on Devon's shoulder and closed my eyes, perfectly content.

Then my legs were off the ground, strong arms at my knees and back. I briefly wondered why there was softness beneath me but pushed it away. Why not just enjoy something for once?

I snuggled closer to his chest as he lay beside me, and prayed that tonight the nightmares would go away, and I could have peace in my own mind.

**X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X**

**(The italics are Zoey dreaming and the normal print is Devon watching her)**

_I was walking down a seemingly deserted street. Cars were strewn around me, some flashing, others caught up in flames._

_I looked down to see that I was clad only in my bra and lacy red panties. It didn't bother me, though somewhere deep down I knew it should._

Zoey's brow furrowed. She looked aggravated. She squirmed slightly next to me, then settled into a troubled sleep.

_I held my pistols ahead of me, doing exactly what I would in any circumstance._

_I turned the corner to see two common infected going at it in a back alley. Again, it seemed completely unalarming, almost natural to come across. I shot them square in the face, not taking a second glance._

_I turned and continued down the street._

_A coughing laugh came from a nearby building. I turned to shoot as a sick tongue came flying at me. It hauled me up, wrapped around my hips, squeezing the life from me._

_The ground got farther and farther away, my pistols breaking against it. Tears fell after them because I knew he would kill me now. I squeezed my eyes shut, preparing for the act that would spill my blood across these streets. _

"No, don't kill me. Please!" she was begging to an imaginary foe. Her arms flailed about, groping for some invisible object just out of her reach.

_As soon as I was within reach I felt it grab at me, claws poking into my torso. _

_The disgusting hands roughly groped around my body. He grabbed at my breasts and ass, shoving its hand down into my panties._

_My clothes were ripped off and thrown to street below. My eyes flew open as the Smoker dragged me and plopped me down on the hard roof._

_It's pants had been thrown nearly a foot and his tongue was back in his own mouth. I tried desperately to scrambled away but he pounced on me and pinned me to the rooftop._

_He was naked on top of me, and I was naked beneath him. I looked at his face and saw the unmistakable features of Bill. I screamed as it dawned on me exactly what he would do. It had happened every night I had slept, and yet I never realized it until this moment in the dream. _

"Don't touch me. Please, let me go. _Please!_" Her protests became more heated as tears streamed down her face. "_Get off of me!_" she screamed. I grabbed her wild arms with one hand and used the other to shut her mouth. I could hear infected outside stirring with the sudden disruption. She fought like hell to get free, but I kept her pinned.

_He shoved his tongue into my mouth, cutting off my protests. My wrists were pinned to the roof by Bill's hands. I squirmed beneath him, trying desperately to free myself. I was powerless, my strength failing me. _

_As Bill descended on me, a screech echoed around us. A Hunter pounced on the Smoker, leading to a heated battle that sent them rolling across the concrete roof._

_The Hunter gouged Bill's eyes out, leaving him a limp carcass._

_Tears once more streamed down my face as the Hunter's hood fell away, revealing my Devon. He took me in his arms, carrying me gently until I felt solid ground beneath me._

She smiled peacefully in her sleep now, and I released her. Her sudden change in attitude scared me, so I watched her carefully. She sighed my name contentedly and turned away from me, her arms gripping something ahead of her. I was wary to wake her, but I knew that if she stayed as random as this I would have to. . .

_Then, he turned and started walking away. His protective arms around me slipped away and I screamed in renewed fear. I begged him to come back, running after him into the unknown._

"No, Devon, don't go." She started squirming again. Her face looked frustrated and desperate. A stream of tears sprang up again. She let out a choked sob "Don't leave me again." Her voice was small and defeated. As though she was talking less to me and more to herself.

"_DAMMIT BABE, WAKE UP!"_

My eyes flew open and my dream world shattered around me. Devon's hands were wrapped around my shoulders, his sharp fingers digging into my skin.

I sat up and fought like hell to catch my breath. Tears still streamed as I remembered the horrifying turn my nightmare had taken. I was shaking hard.

Devon's arms wrapped around my shoulders and I buried my face his chest.

He cradled me like a baby all night until I drifted off into another uneasy sleep.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

(Devon POV)

It was almost midday when I finally had the heart to wake her. She was so restless last night. She had barely calmed down when the sun rose.

I looked outside and shook her awake. We had to leave soon, or somebody might not make it to pick us up before nightfall.

"What?" She opened her eyes. She looked slightly groggy. I didn't blame her. She had had rough night.

"We gotta go." I explained. I was startled at the sound of my voice. It was surprising how raspy it sounded. I knew that other Hunters couldn't speak as well as me, but I hadn't paid attention to my voice before now. Could she even understand me?

"Damn, it's almost noon." She quickly loaded her gun, taking extra ammunition clips and packing herself with everything she could carry.

She kicked open the door, pointing her gun around to check for any infected around. Her face became frustrated. "It's too... quiet."

"Hello! If there are any survivors, please answer!" She jumped as a voice came out of nowhere. She looked at a body lying limp near a broken plane. She gingerly picked up the radio at his belt. "Yes, I'm here, I'm not infected I repeat, I am not infected."

"Are you immune?"

"I am not infected."

"That's different. Have you come in contact with infected individuals?"

"Yes! Yes! I am immune!"

"Okay, we're sending a copper to meet you now. It will take you to the nearest survivor camp."

"No! I need to get to a camp with a laboratory. I need any and all information and projects you have started for curing the infection. I am a scientist with the CDC, I can cure this is you will let me."

"Shit, get that damn chopper over there!" The man said to someone in the background. "Yes, we can get you there, it's not far. Is there anyone else with you?"

"Well..." She paused. "A- a Hunter is with me. He has not tried to harm me. I believe that his assistance is crucial to finding an antidote."

I only heard static over the radio.

Shit.

"Hello?" she waited, "HELLO??"

"Ma'am, I cannot allow the Hunter to enter campgrounds."

My heart fell. Zoey let out a choked sob. "I'm not going without him."

I growled and she looked up at me with tear-filled eyes. "I'm not going without you, Devon."

"Ma'am, we need you to get on that chopper. Your nation depends on it. The human race needs you!"

I took her by the shoulders and shook her gently, "You have to go, Zoey."

She started crying harder, "I can't live without you, Devon. Not now. Not again."

"You _have to_." A tear crept down my cheek. I heard the swish of helicopter blades grow near.

"Ma'am, The chopper is almost there. We need you to board it and come to the camp. I'm sorry, but we are not authorized for the Hunter to enter the grounds."

The chopper was landing close to us. Her hair blew around her face. Her tears were thrown into the air. Infected had heard the sound and were now rushing at us. A roar alerted me to a Tank. I dragged her to the chopper.

I pushed her in and started securing her to the seat, twisting her arms behind her so she couldn't undo herself. The pilot watched with pained eyes.

Zoey fought like hell to free herself but it was no use.

The pilot put his hand on my shoulder and I turned to face him. "I'm sorry, I'm not authorized to take you into the camp."

I nodded. I kissed Zoey on the lips one last time then exited the cockpit.

She fought even harder as the chopper lifted off the ground. "Devon! DEVON! Don't leave me!"

I cried harder as I watched her fly off into the air. Her screams became drowned out by the chopper blades and the Horde now almost upon me.

Smacking away nearby infected, I ran on all fours and made one desperate lunge.

**AN – Sadly, this is near the end of our adventures with Devon and Zoey. I've got an Epilogue I'm writing up, so just wait a bit.**


	8. Epilogue

**Yes, this is the last installment of Love 4 the Dead. I hope you enjoyed it, cus I know I loved writing it. Don't kill my buzz by flaming the ending. I'm so insanely happy with how I ended it.**

**INSANELY LONG EPILOGUE ALERT!

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**Epilogue**

_October 28th, 2012_

"I have been working for three years on this antidote and now, I swear it's ready. I beg you, sir, let me test it on an infected. I'm confident that it will work."

I was still wearing my lab coat. I was standing in the office of the most important person in the country at the moment.

The military commander looked me over, seeing my pleading eyes. He was an old-fashioned man, but everyone swore he had a soft spot for me. He sighed. "Until you're sure you can mass produce this, I don't think you should start testing it on humans, getting people's hopes up."

I walked around, more animated than I had ever been in the past years. My eyes lit up at his challenge. "Oh, but sir that's the genius of it! With proper working it can be turned to an airborne antidote. I've tested it on every stage of the infection, from new contact to years of exposure. I've tested it with injection and inhaling. I have all the data backed up on millions of computers throughout the country. I've sent it to scientists in countries across the globe for safekeeping. It works!"

'What about the Special infected?"

I flinched slightly, "Well none of our subjects have developed special abilities. It may save them, or it may kill them. We're not really sure."

"Alright, we'll bring in a human subject for you to test on." Just then, the sound of helicopter blades echoed through the camp. We both ran outside.

I saw a sickly looking girl climb out of the chopper. They scanned her eyes and I saw the screen go red. "She's infected! Separate her!"

A man roughly pulled her from her family. They lined her against a wall and one raised a gun to her.

"STOP!" I yelled at the man. I roughly pushed him arms down just before he fired off a round.

I turned to the commander. "Sir, please let me test it now, I have it right here. Please, I can save her!"

He looked seriously at me and nodded. I rushed over to the crying girl. "Ma'am, I'm a scientist. I've been working on a cure to the Green flu. With your permission, I would like to test it on you."

The girl looked scared shitless, as I probably would have been too. She nodded weakly, coughing a bit of blood onto the ground.

I held her arm gingerly and pushed a syringe into her vein. She winced slightly as the foreign medicine rushed through her bloodstream.

"I estimate that the antidote will take about three hours to spread through your body. In about five, you will be mostly cured. Until then I'm going to have to keep you isolated."

She was shaking, "Th-thank you. But please. My name is Anna Greenwood. My father is Thomas Greenwood. If he's here p-please tell him I made it. _Please_!" She looked desperate. I nodded.

"I promise I will. But for now you need to rest." She willingly followed as I led her to the science facilities. Over the years, it had advanced from a large tent to an enormous building. The camps had advanced from fenced-in tents to large societies with constant military protection. Each was a city within itself. We traded with some occasionally, but for the most part we were self-sufficient.

Society had advanced to a point where money was no longer necessary. Everybody did their part to keep the world turning. Without incentive more than the satisfaction that they were putting the world back together. Piece by piece.

A familiar longing tugged at my heartstrings. I remembered my Devon out there. Pushing me back into the chopper seat, kissing me one last time...

I squeezed my eyes shut and pushed the memory away. I couldn't let my past continue to haunt me like this.

Well, that's not exactly true.

I couldn't really call Devon my past could I?

Not when I still had this ring around my finger.

I touched it delicately. It was so beautiful, even through the years of dirt and grime it had acquired.

I sighed and looked up as I heard someone call to me. It was the pilot who originally brought me here. I had bonded with him over the past years and we had become good friends.

He was smiling at me, he took my hand and started dragging me outside. "Zoey, there's something you need to see."

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**Devon POV**

I watched in awe as Zoey ran up to the sick girl and injected her with something.

An antidote, she had said.

A tear rolled down my cheek as I smelled the sickness leaving her already.

I ran up to my pilot friend at the gate.

"I know, I saw too." He said smiling at me. "I'll go get her."

More tears streamed as my heart inflated with hope.

I heard the doors of the facility slide open and I felt like I could fly.

"What is it, Tom?"

It was her.

It was really her.

It was finally time to see her, after these long years of waiting.

She was giddy. After finding a working antidote, I didn't blame her. She looked to the gate where I was and stopped short. Her smile slowly melted and awe crossed her face.

_She sees me. She remembers me!_

She ran the rest of the way and grabbed at the chain-link fence separating us.

Tears dripped down her perfect face as she recognized me. "Devon?" she said in a small voice. She was trying hard not to choke up. "Oh, please tell me that's really you."

I answered her by sticking my hand through the fence and cupping her face in my hand. I gently removed a tear with my thumb.

"Zoey, he's here now because you have the antidote. He stayed away because he knew they wouldn't let him in. He knew they would probably just kill him."

She looked at him as though remembering he was still there.

She turned back to me gravely, "I don't know what it does to Special infected. It could kill you, Devon."

I stuck my arm out farther, desperate for her to understand. "Z-zo-Zoeeey" It was all I could muster from my decaying lips, my bloated tongue, my raspy throat.

She sniffled and a tear dropped from her beautiful face. "I won't, I can't take the risk of losing you, Devon. Not again. I can't lose you again."

She started backing away from me. I was appalled, how could she walk away knowing I remained like this?

"I'll come back to you, Devon. I swear I will." She turned and ran off, wiping away all traces of her tears.

Tom looked down at my hunched form. "She's going to the Commander. She's going to test it. I swear once she's sure you'll be safe you're the first one she'll use it on."

I nodded numbly and leapt away, back to the surrounding woods I had come to know so well.

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**ZOEY POV**

"Please, let me test it on Special Infected, I have to know if it will work on them."

The commander stared me down, "How do you know that woman wasn't a Special Infected?"

I shook my head slightly, how many times did I have to tell him before it sunk in? "She wasn't showing any signs of Special blood. Each Special shows tell-tale signs early on after being infected, hours even." I shot off into my rant, talking quickly and impatiently, "Witches have elongated fingers turned to points at the tips and high body heat, Smokers have a serious cough and often find it hard to breathe, Jockeys backs hunch over and their voice becomes extremely high pitched, Chargers-"

"Alright!" He cut me off. "Enough, I get the point. What makes you think a Hunter would be the best first test subject?"

I was really going to have to sell this. I had my underlying reasons for testing Hunters first, but the commander couldn't know about that. I'd have to tell him about Devon.

"Our studies have shown that Hunters go through the least amount of mutation during the process, making them the most likely to change back normally. Right next to Witches. However, Witches are far more dangerous and with their body temperature so high any sedatives we give the will be quickly disposed of in their system."

He narrowed his eyes, extremely skeptical still. I resisted the urge to chew at my lower lip as I always did when I was nervous.

He let out a defeated sigh, "Alright, if it will further your research, I can have a team bring you a sedated Hunter by the end of the week.

My heart lit up and I smiled. "You won't regret this sir. This will be a huge step towards advancing the cure."

He nodded and turned back to his work, dismissing me.

I practically skipped back to my quarters.

_October 31st, 2012_

I stood next to the heavily sedated Hunter lying strapped to the table. The team of specialized military personnel had brought it in minutes earlier. _Not it, him. _I had to constantly remind myself that these infected were still people, not the monsters I had once thought they were.

He was rather muscular, as I assumed all infected were. He had ink marks indicating tattoos on his wrist and biceps, but his skin was too decayed to tell what they were besides smudges of ink. One of his sleeves had been cut off his jacket for easier access to a vein.

I filled the syringe with the greenish clear liquid antidote I had created. I took a deep breath and plunged it into the thing's vein, pushing until there was no more in the syringe. The Hunter let out a screech as it's heart rate rose dramatically from the unconsciousness it had just been in. It fought against the restraints as his heartbeat skyrocketed, going high above normal level.

_Shit, I'm gonna lose him. _I was glad I was alone, I was distraught at the mere thought of my antitode possibly killing Devon.

I pinned the Hunter's shoulders down as it's heart gave thundered on then stopped, giving out after its last moments of exertion. I was breathing hard.

Then, something amazing happened.

The decay rapidly fled from his limbs, showing his smoothed skin. There were bumps and slight discoloration along his arm, but on the whole he was returning back to the appearance of an uninfected individual.

My mind raced with the possibilities that could arise from this trial. It could lead our research in exactly the right direction. I silently thanked the commander for making video tapes of all our work in here mandatory.

I moved to unstrap the poor man when I noticed one of the tattoos he had on his wrist. It was a word, no a name with words over it, printed in old english lettering.

**Love Always,**

**Zoey**

I nearly choked when I read it. He had gotten it on his 21st birthday, a gift from me. I remembered the card I had written him with the present: For you. Love Always, Zoey.

I slapped back his hood, revealing two piercing green eyes staring blankly at the ceiling.

I whimpered, "No." I shoved my face into his chest and started heaving, sobs wracking my body. "NO! Devon!"

How could I have done this to him? How could I do anything else without him? He had been my reason for going on. The hope that he remained out there, waiting for a cure I could bring him was the only thing driving me these hard, long years.

I walked to the cabinets, tears blurring my vision. I searched nearly blind though the one at my station. I found the gun assigned to me, kept hidden away in case I ever had to use it again.

Well, now the time had come.

I loaded the gun.

One bullet, that's all I would need.

I turned to face the small camera still recording.

"I'm sorry." I couldn't say anymore. There was nothing more to say. I couldn't think about the possibility that the fate of humanity was resting on my shoulders I couldn't think about the lives that would be lost due to my absence in finding the cure.

I could only think about Devon, lying cold and lifeless on the table before me.

I could only think about how I would do anything to feel his arms around me once more.

I sat on the stool and held Devon's hand, looking deep into those shallow lifeless eyes. I rested my head down on his shoulder and pointed the gun to my head.

"I love you."

I pulled the trigger, and I swear Devon's hand was right there with mine, bringing me to be reunited with him once again.

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**Big thanks to everyone who reviewed, subscribed to alerts, and/or favorited me and/or this story. You have no idea how good it feels to see all those messages for people liking your work.**

**So check out my other L4D story if you wish, _Falling in love is such an easy thing to do_. Zoey/Ellis, Romance/Drama, rated T (if you need help finding it ;D). Or you can look at my RENT one [Roger & Mark, Romance/Drama, rated T ;D] which nobody has reviewed (grumble).**


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